Higher Education in the Creation of Individual Social Capital: a Student Organization Ethnography
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HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE CREATION OF INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL CAPITAL: A STUDENT ORGANIZATION ETHNOGRAPHY by Jeffrie W. Miracle Bachelor of Arts, Brigham Young University, 2004 Master of Education, University of Pittsburgh, 2009 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The School of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Pittsburgh 2013 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH SCHOOL OF EDUCATION This dissertation was presented by Jeffrie W. Miracle It was defended on April 3, 2013 and approved by Dr. Audrey J. Murrell, Associate Professor, Business Administration, Psychology, Public and International Affairs, Katz Graduate School of Business Dr. B. Jean Ferketish, Adjunct Professor, Department of Administrative and Policy Studies, Assistant Chancellor and Secretary of the Board of Trustees Dr. John C. Weidman, Professor, Department of Administrative and Policy Studies Dissertation Advisor: Dr. W. James Jacob, Associate Professor, Department of Administrative and Policy Studies ii Copyright © by Jeffrie W. Miracle 2013 iii HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE CREATION OF INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL CAPITAL: A STUDENT ORGANIZATION ETHNOGRAPHY Jeffrie W. Miracle, PhD University of Pittsburgh, 2013 Higher education is often credited with being an effective means for an individual to invest in and acquire skills and knowledge—often referred to as human capital. Participating in higher education may also provide an individual with the opportunity to build valuable relationships with individuals that result in access to resources such as information, the mutual exchange of favors, emotional support and career networking—often referred to as social capital. While it is understood that higher education is an effective way for an individual to invest in and accumulate human capital, it is not as clearly understood how higher education can be an effective way for an individual to invest in and accumulate other forms of capital, such as social capital. The consequence of not having an equivalent emphasis on how higher education creates social capital among students potentially implies that higher education may not be explicitly making an effort to promote opportunities for social capital investment; students and researchers may not be aware that higher education can facilitate social capital investment; and students may not understand the application of social capital in their own lives. In response to the lack of emphasis on higher education as a form of social capital investment, this study looks at one segment of higher education, namely undergraduate student participation in student organizations, to explore the potential opportunities for social capital accumulation in higher education. Qualitative research methodology was used to collect, analyze and interpret comprehensive narrative and visual data to gain insights in the phenomenon of higher education in the creation of social capital. The population for the study was undergraduate students at the iv University of Pittsburgh who participate in student organizations. As the result of criterion- based sampling, the sample chosen for the study was the Blue and Gold Society, a student ambassador organization that supports and represents the University while providing members with opportunities to network with faculty, staff, other students, university donors, alumni and community members. Ethnography, more specifically participant observation, semi-structured interviews and cultural artifact review, were utilized to collect the data. Computer assisted qualitative data analysis software was utilized to efficiently manage, organize and analyze data. The results from the research study answer the questions: 1) What individuals make up an undergraduate student organization member’s social network and how are those relationships developed? 2) What forms of social capital are embedded in the social networks of undergraduate student organization members? 3) What role does trust play in an undergraduate student organization member’s access to social capital and how is trust developed among social network members? The findings state that members of the Blue and Gold Society student organization are able to collectively invest in and accumulate 18 forms of social capital amongst a social network of 30 distinct individuals/types of individuals; Society members develop relationships with these individuals through 21 distinct processes; trust plays a role in Society members’ ability to invest in and access social capital embedded in their social networks; and, Society members utilize 16 distinct processes to develop trust within their relationships with social network members. Recommendations are provided for higher education student affairs professionals, researchers, institutional leadership and assessment designers. v TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE ................................................................................................................................... XX 1.0 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 21 1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT ............................................................................... 22 1.2 PURPOSE STATEMENT ................................................................................. 22 1.3 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY ................................................................. 23 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS ............................................................................... 25 1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY ................................................................. 26 1.6 DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS ...................................................................... 27 1.7 ORGANIZATION OF REMAINING CHAPTERS ....................................... 27 1.8 SUMMARY ........................................................................................................ 28 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................................... 30 2.1 SOCIAL CAPITAL AS A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ....................... 31 2.1.1 Networks ......................................................................................................... 32 2.1.2 Levels of social capital ................................................................................... 35 2.1.3 Trust ................................................................................................................ 37 2.1.4 Forms of social capital ................................................................................... 38 2.1.5 The role that trust plays in social networks and social capital accumulation ............................................................................................................... 46 vi 2.1.6 A Summary of elements of individual social capital .................................. 47 2.1.7 A conceptual model of individual social capital .......................................... 50 2.1.8 Measurements of networks and resources .................................................. 52 2.1.9 Measurements of trust ................................................................................... 59 2.2 ETHNOGRAPHY AS A RESEARCH METHOD TO STUDY SOCIAL CAPITAL ............................................................................................................................ 61 2.3 HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE CREATION OF SOCIAL CAPITAL .... 65 3.0 METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................... 72 3.1 RESEARCH DESIGN ....................................................................................... 73 3.2 POPULATION AND SAMPLE ....................................................................... 74 3.3 SAMPLING PROCEDURES ........................................................................... 81 3.4 SETTING ............................................................................................................ 84 3.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS ............................................................................... 87 3.6 INSTRUMENTATION ..................................................................................... 89 3.7 DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES ....................................................... 101 3.8 DATA ANALYSIS ........................................................................................... 106 4.0 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ............................................................................. 115 4.1 BLUE AND GOLD SOCIETY MEMBERS ................................................. 116 4.1.1 Blue and Gold Society members – committed, devoted, and engaged ... 122 4.1.2 Blue and Gold Society members – family-like and support network ..... 123 4.1.3 Blue and Gold Society members – diverse, elite, and of good character 124 4.1.4 Blue and Gold Society members – well connected, well known, and privileged ................................................................................................................... 126 vii 4.1.5 Blue and Gold Society members – trustworthy and helpful .................... 127 4.1.6 Blue and Gold Society members – leaders and University representatives 128 4.1.7 Blue and Gold Society members – respected and happy ......................... 129 4.1.8 Blue and Gold Society members’ characteristics – points for discussion 130 4.2 CONCERNING SOCIAL NETWORKS ....................................................... 132 4.2.1 Findings: Blue and Gold Society members – social